28 Turkish Principals suspended from Pak-Turk schools

Islamabad: The administration of Pak-Turk Schools on Tuesday removed 28 Turkish principals from across the country, a private news channel reported.

In addition to removing Turkish principals of 28 schools and colleges crosswise the country, the administration also suspended the board of directors (BoD) which represented Turkish residents.

The status of these schools dropped into uncertainty after the ambassador of Turkey called on the government of Pakistan to close down all institutions, claiming that they are sponsored by the Fethullah Gulen-inspired Hizmet movement.

Last week, during an official visit to Islamabad, the Foreign Minister for Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu stressed that the network of ‘Gulen-run’ schools in Pakistan should be closed.

Read More: Fate of Pak-Turk schools across Pakistan ambiguous

Ankara states that Gulen, who is living in self-imposed refugee in US, was the suspected mastermind of the failed military coup in Turkey just a few weeks back. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blamed the cleric, a former Erdogan ally as well as the devotees for the rebellion and demanded his repatriation. Gulen has denied any involvement.

On August 6^th, the Islamabad High Court granted the deputy attorney general (DAG) 3 weeks to look for instructions from the ministry of interior and the ministry of foreign affairs after the Pak-Turk Education Foundation moved the IHC against the possible closing of its school chain by Pakistan government.

Justice Aamer Farooq accepted the request of DAG to grant more time for lookout for instructions from the ministries. At the same time, when the petitioner counsel Hafiz Arfaat raised concerns that the government will close the Pak-Turk Education Foundation, the court instructed him to approach the court if such a verdict was taken.

Read More: Pak-Turk Schools won’t be closed in Sindh, says Jam Mehtab      

During the hearing, the DAG said that so far government has not taken any decision on this matter and most of the information was based on rumours spread by some sections of media.

In the appeal, another counsel for the requester, Hafiz SA Rehman, requested the court to permit them to keep functioning without interference.

In his arguments, Rehman claimed that the foundation was registered along with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and had a valid certificate for operation.

He furthermore said that more than 11,000 aspirants and 1,500 teachers will be affected if the 23 PakTurk schools in Pakistan were shut down.